Monday, February 22, 2010

Best Trip to Nashville in 9 Months

Oh man, last week I worked and last week I was so sick with a cold. I could barely take care of you or this blog at all. But now I'm ready to get serious again (even though I've got a day of work left and my cold hasn't gone away as much as I thought it would). Let's talk about that trip to Nashville I took two weeks ago. (But not the part where we went back to Prince's, we already covered that.)

Caught an early SW flight out of LGA, just before the great snows were supposed to come to New York.

Jeff took me right over to Gabby's for a serious burger, a smash burger. Smash burgers, they're catching on all over the place.

I think the guy on the left was Gabby? He was a chatty fellow, that's for sure.

That night Jeff and I went to the world famous Bluebird Cafe, it's a place to hear music.

It was good.

But here's the holy smokes highlight of the night: My buddy neighbor Steve from my last year at BYU happened to be there that night! He's in the Army now (uhm...maybe the Marines? I know I'm in big trouble if I say the wrong one but I think it's the Army) and was headed back to Afghanistan for his last tour a few days later. Holy smokes. What did you do last week, huh?

Steve used to carry the heavy machine gun, but now he uses a rifle with a grenade launcher on it. He told me a grenade launcher doesn't have a lot of recoil to it, it really feels like you're lobbing something, and that's the sensation I always got from the video games I've played. To that comment Steve added that's how he's felt with his firearms, "Oh yeah, I know this one, I used it before in Goldeneye."

Oh man, my guts just get all stirred up hoping the best for dear old Steve.

After the show we looked for food, but everything I remember liking (The Dog, Jersey Mike's Subs) were closed down. This Nash Vegas thing, it seems to be a grassroots things they've got going on over there.

I "settled" on a Jimmy John's sub, and when I say "settled" really I mean I scored because I sure love a Jimmy John's sub.

Then, a little later, we picked up Gabe. Jeff had lots of computer problems around the house, so Gabe had plenty to do. Mysteries to solve, webs to untangle.

And there we were, three fellows talking and laughin' and eating pizza into the late hours. We started watching Strange Brew but I fell completely asleep 1/3 of the way into it. Sorry to have disrespected you, Bob and Doug.

Saturday morning we took advantage of Free Day a the Country Music Hall of Fame. What a great museum! What a great time! A post of its own this adventure deserves to be.

That afternoon we had our Prince's adventure and spent a while deciding on a new TV for Jeff to buy before discovering the chosen TV was not available anywhere...turns out the day before the Superbowl isn't the best time to find a new flatscreen.

That night we had dinner with Paul! Q! Reynolds! Yeahhh.

These look like good times, right?

That's because they were.

The name of where we were escapes me, but this was my burger.

Then we went to the Exit/In, a fine venue, for some music. Some might say the notion of this concert was what got the whole idea for this vacation started.

The first opening band: They had a name like Smith and Western or something like that. They were good.

The second opening band: The Magic Kids. Urggh. A Sunny Indie Death Squad, too so indie they might as well have been alternative.

Here's the problem with the Magic Kids: Their fans. This is what they bring out in people.

And the Headliners? Girls. I dug that record of theirs and they were excellent live. What I was impressed to see was that it was a band of older musicians (by older I mean not early-twenties, except for possibly the frontman) that played their instruments well.

The setlist. Just out of proper sight.

Sunday: Superbowl Sunday. Jeff's chef friend Aaron was in charge of the serious food. He roasted us a whole pig (30lber)

He brought this awesome cheese: "Red Dragon" made of mustard seed and ale.

And he shucked us oyster after oyster after oyster.

That night I definitely doubled the number of oysters I've had in my life.

And while Jeff wasn't able to get a new TV, the Reynolds' leant us one of theirs to help create the Sportsbar experience Jeff was aiming for.

Party: Very well attended.

And during half-time Steve freestyled a bit (I gave him his beats):

Jeff wanted you to see this, all the trash that we created that night. The true indicator of a real party, I suppose.

And that's the trip I took to Nashville. Sometime soon I'll tell you about the Country Music Hall of Fame, it was real neat.